Greek protesters take over radio, television outlets

Protracted rioting threatens the Greek economy and regional stability, the government says.

December 17, 2008

By David Montero

Unrest rippled throughout Greece Tuesday, with protesters hanging banners in Athens, attacking a police station, and hijacking the country's main television stations. The violence enters its second week as protesters hope to build momentum toward a planned nationwide strike on Thursday.

Violence has erupted in Greece since Dec. 6, when police shot and killed 15-year-old Alexandros Grigoropoulos in Exarchia, "a scruffy central district of Athens known as the anarchists' home base," the Economist explains.

In a pointed, symbolic call for more action, protesters yesterday wrapped the iconic Acropolis in Athens in a series of hung, huge banners, calling for "resistance," the BBC reports.